Chapter 3844: Win over on a rainy night
The rumbling thunder of Chengtian Gate could be clearly heard, and the Xuanwu Gate was at war with each other. The wind was blowing, big raindrops fell from the sky, and a burst of mist rose in the night.
It was windy, cold and rainy, and the fighting was fierce.
Fang Jun stood in the wind and rain under the Xuanwu Gate with his helmet on and his horse on. Even though the cold rain wet his shirt, he still sat firmly and motionless. Behind him, thousands of soldiers and elites were arrayed neatly and murderously. They remained unmoved by the rain all over their bodies, with sharp eyes and clenched swords and guns.
The corner door on one side of the Xuanwu Gate opened from the inside, and several horses came galloping towards them. When they arrived, they stood in front of Fang Jun. The leader was wearing a helmet and armor, with gray eyebrows and a square face with a long beard. He was still sitting on the horse with his body intact. The tall and burly figure is none other than Zhang Shigui, Duke of Guo.
Several soldiers following behind held up a large black canopy to block the wind and rain.
"Huagai" is not only used by emperors, but also by generals. "The soldiers are regarded as generals, build the canopy, and set up fighting tributes." Xungui can only use it to decorate variegated colors...
Fang Jun clasped his fists on horseback and said with a smile: "The wind and rain are coming. Duke Guo can't sit still anymore. He is afraid that I will raise troops to invade Xuanwu Gate, so he comes here to try to persuade me to change my mind and rein in my horse?"
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Xuanwu Gate is the gateway to Taiji Palace. The current situation is so critical that Zhang Shigui, who is responsible for guarding Xuanwu Gate, does not dare to slack off in the slightest. Even the prince's confidants like Fang Jun do not dare to let him enter the palace easily, otherwise this will happen. At that time, Zhang Shigui should have invited Fang Jun into the Xuanwu Gate and climbed up to the tower to drink tea and listen to the rain, instead of going out and standing under the wind and rain with Fang Jun...
Zhang Shigui had a stern face and snorted: "Can this kind of thing be laughed at? It's not appropriate."
He has seniority and seniority, and has taken great care of Fang Jun. Otherwise, if it had been any other founding nobles, few would have been able to speak to Fang Jun in such a tone.
After all, Fang Jun today has already made these Conglong Xunchen treat each other as equals, and they dare not show any slight or slack.
Before Fang Jun could reply, Zhang Shigui looked up at the stormy sky and said in a deep voice: "Is it worth doing this?"
It was a meaningless sentence, but Fang Jun understood its meaning.
After a moment of silence, Fang Jun sighed softly and said, "How can you have it both ways? Such a great opportunity can just eliminate the chronic diseases of the empire and remove the cancer attached to the empire's body. It is worth taking some risks for this." ”
Being in the Tang Dynasty and sharing weal and woe with the entire empire over the years gave him a heavy sense of mission and he was willing to do his best to rid the Tang Dynasty of its deepest hidden dangers. This will certainly not make the Tang Dynasty immortal and never sink, but at least it will not make the same mistakes again and embark on the same old path of history.
In the troubled times of the late Tang Dynasty, the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, nearly a hundred years of wars and chaos, had almost exhausted the last trace of the nation's courage. Although the Song Dynasty that succeeded it ended the troubled times and unified the world, apart from its national policy of "advocating culture and restraining military force", the legacy of the troubled times of the Five Dynasties was the most profound influence.
The people of the world are really frightened and hate the consequences of warriors taking power, and they never want that scene to happen again...
In the end, it was overkill. The rise of warriors to power will indeed bring turmoil and massacres to the world. However, if one blindly worships civility and restrains martial arts, it is equivalent to breaking the backbone of a country or a nation. When warriors cannot obtain the corresponding status and power, the consequences will be Naturally, the combat power is depleted and the morale of the army is unstable. No matter how many troops there are, it is difficult to establish the absolute belief that "attacks will be conquered and battles will be won."
Then, the world was in chaos, the empire collapsed, the humiliation of Jingkang, and the mainland of China fell...until Emperor Hongwu rose up from the grass to drive out the Tartars and restore China, the land of China had been surviving for more than a hundred years under the iron cavalry of the barbarians. , the world is smelly, the people are like pigs and dogs, and culture is almost cut off.
However, even the Ming Dynasty, which is known as "the emperor guards the country and the king dies in the country", is as decisive as the two Song Dynasties in advocating literature and suppressing military power.
The legacy of the fall of the Tang Dynasty caused far-reaching harm...
The Tang Dynasty was not inevitable. Under the feudal centralized rule, no dynasty could escape the fate of prosperity and extinction. The rise of empires, economic development, cultural prosperity, land annexation, people's livelihood, political instability, public dissatisfaction, collapse, and another dynasty rising from the ruins... The land of China and Chinese civilization are in such an inescapable fate. There are turbulences, changes, and cycles.
But the Tang Dynasty could not perish when its branches were weak and warlords were everywhere. Once the centralized power collapsed, warlords from all over the world were divided, and troubled times came, it would be difficult for one person to step forward to wipe out the heroes from all walks of life and reunite the world.
Zhang Shigui is just a military general and does not have such a far-reaching strategic vision. He is thinking about relatively superficial hidden dangers: "Maybe your thoughts are for the country and the people and for Li Tang's country, but the prince may not think so."
Everyone is selfish, no one is exception.
For the prince, no matter how grand his ambitions were, no matter how brilliant his future was, they were not as important as the immediate victory over the rebels and his smooth accession to the throne.
Because if you can't defeat the rebels and ascend the throne as emperor, everything will immediately disappear and collapse... If your life is gone, what ideals and future can you tell me?
Fang Jun looked at Zhang Shigui, raised the corner of his lips, and said meaningfully: "Whose side is Duke Guo on?"
Zhang Shigui withdrew his gaze from the rain curtain, glanced at Fang Jun, met his eyes, and said slowly: "I have followed your majesty for half my life. I have lived and died under your majesty and made great achievements. Naturally, I will always stand by your majesty. The emperor's destiny is to die or not." Swirl heel.”
At present, the news of His Majesty Li Er's death has not yet been released. Although everyone is speculating that His Majesty has passed away, the day that he fails to get the approval of the court means that he cannot announce it to his mouth. Therefore, under such circumstances, His Majesty Li Er is still the Lord of the Tang Dynasty, and there is no flaw in Zhang Shigui's words.
However, the fact is that everyone knows that His Majesty has passed away...The true meaning of Zhang Shigui's words is quite intriguing.
Fang Jun changed his perspective and asked again: "Duke Guo has been fighting for half his life and has rich experience. Do you think the East Palace has a chance of winning in the current situation?"
Perhaps it was due to the wind and rain at night, or perhaps no one nearby was worried that the topic would be leaked. Zhang Shigui said calmly: "The key to victory or defeat lies in Li Ji stationed at Tongguan. Donggong's words don't count, and Guanlong's words don't count. Because no matter which one of the two sides wins in the end, they have to Looking up at Li Ji's face - if Li Ji wants to 'help the world', Guan Long is plotting to treason and usurp the throne. If Li Ji wants to 'bring order to order', Dong Gong will die unjustly... So, now that Dong Gong is fighting Guan Long to death, what's the point? What’s the meaning?”
With a look of regret on his face, he seems to think that only "peace talks" are the best way to eliminate military disasters. How stupid it is to give up peace talks and fight for life and death now...
But Fang Jun would not be misled by his expression. The rain was falling in his ears, the strong wind was blowing and splashing raindrops, and the canopy above his head was crumbling in the wind and rain. He said in a deep voice: "Why do you want to bully me, Lord Guo? Even Li Ji , it doesn’t matter what you say.”
"Boom!"
A spring thunder exploded nine days away, with a powerful aftershock. A branch-like lightning cut through the night and connected the sky and the earth, illuminating the surrounding areas in an instant.
Zhang Shigui's eyes widened, unable to conceal his shock, and he lost his voice: "What did you say?"
Fang Jun smiled slightly and seemed to have everything under control: "It doesn't matter what I say. The important thing is that Duke Guo must remember his responsibilities and duties. Your loyalty is not to a certain person, but to the country of Li Tang." , these billions of Li Shu! The place of the prince is the foundation of the country. If the East Palace falls and the prince dies, it means that the orthodox inheritance of the Tang Dynasty is no longer there, and there will be trouble in the future. The situation was extremely serious. During the Tang Dynasty, the succession of the throne would be accompanied by bloody storms, until each succession of thrones exhausted the last bit of vitality of the empire, which collapsed among the ruins, and the people of the world were plunged into dire straits... The Guo Kingdom Are you going to push this world into such a desperate situation, or are you going to turn the tide and turn things around? ”
Zhang Shigui's face was cold and hard, but his heart was already flooded!
How on earth did he know?
What else does he know?
But he couldn't ask this question. As long as he asked it, it meant that he had admitted all Fang Jun's guesses... After all, Fang Jun could only treat these as guesses.
Zhang Shigui's eyes were shining brightly, and he was like a cheetah on horseback with full momentum. He stared at Fang Jun closely and asked word by word: "What do you really want to say with these words of the Duke of Yue?" (End of this chapter)